


ocean waves

by 4416moon



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: 00 line lucas and jungwoo make appearances, M/M, This is set in summer, donghyuck loves the ocean, haechan centric, he maybe also loves mark
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-26
Updated: 2018-05-26
Packaged: 2019-05-14 00:14:14
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,086
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14758983
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/4416moon/pseuds/4416moon
Summary: mark had started a storm in the ocean of donghyuck's mind and the seas deep within his chest.





	ocean waves

**Author's Note:**

> okay so. this is the first long work i've ever done and i honestly don't know if it's good or not but here i am posting it anyway. i got this idea from a dbt worksheet and it wouldn't leave my mind so i wrote it in a night. :)

from the time he was young, donghyuck loved to watch the ocean. he was born in the beginning of summer, when the scent of the salt filled water was starting to fill up the air of every beach that was occupied by families that were wanting a nice day in the sun after the cool winds of spring and birds who were looking for their next meal among the lunch baskets of said families. the beach felt like home to him and the push and pull of the waves had enchanted him since before he could walk. on summer nights he would stay out late and watch the way the waves reflected the light of the moon that controlled them.

donghyuck had always felt that he had his own ocean inside of him. he had waves that mirrored those of the ocean and stirred around in his chest and in the depths of his mind. renjun had told him when they were fourteen that maybe donghyuck was born from the sea and every storm that brewed on ocean waters was a cry for him to return to the tides that birthed him. donghyuck found comfort in the idea that the ocean had missed him, and had cried for his return. his friend jeno told him when they were fifteen that the ocean was ruled over by poseidon, and that maybe poseidon had watched over donghyuck his whole life just as donghyuck watched over the ocean. 

donghyuck first meets mark in the middle of july. he was sitting in the sand, watching the waves hit each other softly and hugging his knees to his chest. a figure appeared in his peripheral vision and he turned his head to the sight of a boy sitting next to him in the same sand that stuck to almost every inch of his body. the boy stared back at him, dark brown eyes full of a childlike wonder and curiosity. his lips remained shut tight. the two of them were still, looking at each other with no words exchanged. the boy turned away, looking out to the ocean and began to speak.

"my name is mark," he stated. the way he spoke was soft, matching the features on his face. his index finger traced shapes in the sand as he sat with his legs spread out in front of him. his head hung back and his eyes searched for constellations in the night sky.

donghyuck hummed quietly and introduced himself as well. the two sat in comfortable silence, mark staring up at the moon and donghyuck staring out at it's reflection in the dark blue water.

it wasn't until fifteen minutes later when the conversation started up again, mark asking donghyuck what he was doing at the beach so late at night and donghyuck returning the question without an answer. mark's response to the question was simple, he liked to look at the stars. donghyuck's answer was just as simple as mark's, he liked to watch the ocean. those were the last words exchanged between them before mark got up and left the spot he had been sitting in and headed in the direction of the city. donghyuck guessed the other boy was going home and supposed it was time for him to head back as well. his body was glued to its place in the sand, though, and he could feel the waves inside of him stirring as he followed the retreating figure with his eyes. 

*  
it was two weeks after that night and the waves in donghyuck's chest had been spinning like a whirlpool and the tides of his mind were rising and falling at varied points throughout the day.  
he didn't stop thinking about the boy who liked to look at the stars and trace shapes in the sand.  
maybe it's fate, or just sheer luck, but donghyuck meets mark again after the night at the beach, this time in a small cafe downtown. he waves at him, and mark takes that as an invitation to sit with donghyuck at a booth in the corner. under the lighting of the cafe, donghyuck can see mark's features clearly. his eyes were big, still full of the same childlike wonder they had when he had first seen the boy. his nose was small and defined and his lips were thin but stretched into a smile that showed off his cheekbones. on the top of his head was a mop of black hair, shaved on the sides and slightly wavy. up close he could see the slightly red bags under mark's eyes and wondered if they come from sleepless nights spent gazing up at the stars. mark's voice was still soft, and syllables sounded a bit awkward when they fell out of his mouth. donghyuck learned mark was seventeen, his birthday was in august, and that he liked to write. in return, mark learned that donghyuck had just turned seventeen in june and he liked to sing. mark suggests donghyuck sings for him and the waves in donghyuck's chest start to shift. he says maybe one day and mark smiles at the thought of them seeing each other again.

"why do you like the ocean so much?," mark asks him and the inside of his chest starts to shake. he tells mark the ocean feels like home to him, that he's always been in love with it, that one day he would solve all the mysteries it holds and he hoped it would take him in with loving arms. he realizes he's going on a tangent about his love for the ocean and stops himself, covering his mouth as mark's smile widens and he laughs. mark tells him he thinks of the sky the same way, that maybe he'll become an astronaut one day just to see everything up close. the silence that surrounds them as they drink their coffee is peaceful, just like the blue of the sky or the sound of the ocean on a calm summer night. they finished their drinks and said their goodbyes. donghyuck wished he had gotten mark's number that day.

*

on a wednesday night in the middle of july, donghyuck's eyes opened when the sound of thunder crackling above him in the grey covered sky filled his ears and watched as flashes of lightning striked the pavement outside. rain knocked on his window like an old friend, and he found solace in the gloomy atmosphere of the night. he gets out of his bed and opens his window, allowing the sounds of thunder to resonate in his ears and the scent of rain fill his nose. on nights like this, donghyuck likes to think the ocean is crying for him, awaiting his return to it as renjun had once said, with a silent anger hidden by sadness and patience. he finds himself wondering if mark is watching the sky at this time, or if he's off in a world of pink clouds and rainbows, safe in the confinements of a landscape created by his unconscious mind. he wonders why it is that he thinks of mark so much, why he cares what mark is doing or whether or not mark had seen the moon in its fullest and roundest shape the other night. it seems as though these days, he couldn't stop thoughts of the awkward and kind boy from floating through his mind and clouding up his vision, making the waves in his chest crash against his ribcage in the best way possible. 

he realized that night that mark had started a storm in the ocean of donghyuck's mind and the seas deep within his chest.

*  
"this is huge for a baby tomato," renjun is picking at a ripe and round tomato in the middle of his bowl of salad. donghyuck watches him, his eyes trained on the tomato as it's pushed around by his friend's fork.

jeno continues the conversation before donghyuck can get a word out, "maybe it's just a healthy baby," he suggests with a shrug and renjun seems to accept that answer. 

on the other side of him, donghyuck can see jaemin laughing at jeno's remark, his smile is wide and bright and donghyuck thinks that's an accurate portrayal of jaemin's personality. his friends continue to chat when donghyuck watches as a familiar figure enters through the door of the establishment. it's mark with two other boys, the tallest having tanned skin and a bright smile while the other one has a baby face and innocent looking eyes to match. as if by chance ohe had been called, mark looked over in donghyuck's direction and his eyes landed on the red haired boy and his table of friends. mark nods at him in acknowledgement and donghyuck does the same. he watches as mark and his friends order, then motions for the trio to sit with him and his own friends. mark gets the message and drags a chair over and his friends do the same. mark introduces himself to each of donghyuck's friends and they do the same back. the tallest of mark's friends introduces himself as yukhei, his big eyes almost hidden by his long brown hair as he waves to the four of them. the baby faced boy introduces himself as jungwoo in a voice softer than the cotton candy they make at the county fair. donghyuck and mark make eye contact and he can feel the pools contained within his chest start to tremble. they smile at each other and mark goes back to a conversation about constellations that he was having with renjun. 

the waves in donghyuck's chest still as he watches the boy who had started a whirlpool in his mind and pulled at the waves in his chest like the moon pulled at a high tide. 

*  
the next time donghyuck meets mark, he's in the same place on the same beach where they had first met. he's watching the ocean as it's waves play together, it's a game of tug of war. the ocean in his chest was mimicking them, pushing and pulling at the mere thought of a certain boy with a head of black hair. it's as if the moon had heard his thoughts because a few minutes later, that same boy appeared next to him in the sand. he greeted donghyuck and donghyuck waved back at him, his voice feeling as if it was stuck in his throat, unable to free itself. mark had that effect on donghyuck, he rendered him speechless with his brown eyes and small smile. they sat for a while in a comfortable silence before donghyuck's voice eventually freed itself from the tight grasp of his throat and words came out in a waterfall. a puddle full of confessions about how he hadn't been able to stop thinking about the black haired boy who liked to watch the stars at night, the boy whose birthday was in a week, when the hottest days of summer were beginning. the puddle soaks the sand beneath him and he looks up at mark who is staring back at him. mark's smile makes storm donghyuck's mind and donghyuck loves the feeling of happiness he gets just from the other boys smirk. mark turns to him and says that he had also not stopped thinking about donghyuck and that makes the ocean in his chest begin to swirl around and the waves begin to violently crash into each other. mark moves closer to donghyuck and now they're sitting with their faces just a few inches apart. the closeness makes it hard for donghyuck to breathe and the thunder in his mind begins to roar. mark moves in and his lips are on donghyuck's for two seconds. he pulls away as the storm resides and the clouds moved from their position in front of the sun, allowing the biggest star to shine on the widest ocean yet again. they kiss one more time and donghyuck thinks he could get used to the light feeling in his stomach and the slight nervousness in his chest as mark intertwines their fingers together in the sand.

for the first time since they met, they sit in the sun together and watch as the low tide of the ocean is pulled towards the sands on the beach by the moon's will and donghyuck thinks maybe this is the sky and the ocean's well wishes to him and the boy that created the perfect waves within him.


End file.
